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Time Magazine‘s Maia Szalavitz does good work Monday with a piece reviewing some clinical evidence on cannabinoids – the molecules in marijuana – and aging. The brain’s own cannabinoid system is responsible for stopping inflammation, and “a sort of anti-oxidant cleanse, removing damaged cells and improving the efficiency of the mitochrondria, the energy source that powers cells, ultimately leading to a more robustly functioning brain.” Stimulating it with cannabinoids increase brain-derived neurotrophic factor which protects brain cells and promotes neuron growth, and – bucking the stereotype – maintains normal cognitive function in old age.

But politics keeps scientists from exploring pot for cures to Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s Disease, researchers say. Gary Wenk, professor of neuroscience, immunology and medical genetics at Ohio State University wrote: “In my experience, working in this area is like touching the third rail. … I get hate and love mails that are bizarre and phone messages from people too high to talk. Some of my colleagues have left the area after seeing their names in the National Enquirer… I do not blame a war on marijuana but rather the public’s prejudice and extreme bias. I’ve now discontinued my research on this system.”

“He and others in the field are not completely pessimistic, however,” Szalavitz writes. “He says, ‘I’ve been trying to find a drug that will reduce brain inflammation and restore cognitive function in rats for over 25 years; cannabinoids are the first and only class of drugs that have ever been effective. I think that the perception about this drug is changing and in the future people will be less fearful.’”

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